In HTC Butterfly S, you can note better characteristics compared to HTC One, however, the assembly of the smartphone is somewhat loser. If the performance of the gadget is most important to you, this model will suit you fully.
The device is primarily focused on the Asian market, and is an updated 5-inch smartphone. The device is equipped with a fast quad-core processor (1.9 GHz), an Ultrapixel camera (which can also be found on HTC One), and a powerful (3,200 mAh) battery. Despite the fact that the phone looks a bit similar to its predecessor - the original HTC Butterfly, the developers breathed new life into it with front speakers and new versions of Android Jelly Bean and Sense UI.
Design
As mentioned above, HTC Butterfly S is not too different in appearance from the previous model. The design of the device remains largely unchanged, with the exception of the added front speakers BoomSound. This is a good innovation in the design from HTC, because the sound now turns out to be directed directly towards the user, and does not come from the back or sides, where it can sound deaf.
Speaking of dimensions, it should be noted that the phone is 10.6 mm in thickness, and with its large size it is very noticeable. The device weighs 160 grams, which is also above average, but the device cannot be called too heavy. In truth, it looks more bulky than most users would like.
Screen
If you like large screens, you will appreciate the HTC Butterfly S 919d CDMA GSM 5-inch ergonomic display with a Full-HD panel. As in the original version of the smartphone, the screen provides good color reproduction, as well as wide viewing angles.
As noted above, HTC Butterfly S comes with a large 5-inch LCD3 display with a resolution of 1080 × 1920 pixels. The screen is very sharp and clearly displays details, and the pixel density reaches 441 per inch. You will not see a single annoying jagged icon along the edge of the image or blurry text.
Users immediately appreciated the rich and vibrant colors on this display. They are not very bulky compared to AMOLED screens, but the image quality is very high.
The display of HTC Butterfly S is not too bright. Its peak brightness reaches 360 nits, and this is great for using the device indoors, but this indicator will put a little extra strain on your eyes when you look at it outdoors.
The viewing angles are simply fabulous. Colors do not fade even when you tilt your phone at the most extreme angles.
Control
Another feature due to which the HTC 901e Butterfly S has positive reviews is the presence of three standard control buttons. This allows you to easily return to the original menu by pressing the Home button in the center once, and also switch between running applications without problems and unnecessary time.
Slots for micro-SIM and for cards are located in the upper part of the device under the cover. The design of the smartphone may suggest that access to the microSD card may be difficult, however, this visual assessment is erroneous. The slot is spring-loaded, so you will not have any problem removing the card. The power button is located next to the port, and it can also be used as an IR blaster, allowing you to remotely control the TV.
The smartphone case is smoothly curved, allowing it to fit perfectly into the palm of your hand. Unlike the flagship One, HTC Butterfly S is made of glossy plastic. Therefore, it is not surprising that the phone is covered with spots and fingerprints after prolonged use.
Applications and Services
Butterfly S is the first HTC phone with Android 4.2.2 preinstalled. JellyBean, although it still runs on a 5 UI interface. Added some minor options that relate to the operation of the operating system, in particular, the screen lock settings.
You get access to the quick settings - Daydream, as well as the percentage of battery charge in the status bar. BlinkFeed has also been enhanced with the ability to import feeds from WeChat and Instagram.
HTC Butterfly S 919d also includes several useful applications such as a calendar, email service, music player (no separate video player), a note pad and weather forecast.
Functionality and memory
The basic functionality is very good. The phone book can be accessed quite quickly, as well as synchronize contacts, quickly switch to the call log, favorites and dial buttons.
HTC Butterfly S 901s has 16 GB of internal memory, which may not be enough if you are used to saving many multimedia files. Fortunately, the smartphone has a microSD slot for adding a memory card.
Internet and connections
The device is equipped with a full range of services for wired and wireless connections - Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, DLNA, HDMI, LTE, as well as NFC (which was not in the previous model). Unfortunately, the smartphone does not have the waterproof properties that the original HTC Butterfly was equipped with, which can be attributed to significant disadvantages.
HTC Butterfly S comes preloaded with its own browser, as well as Google’s mobile version of Chrome. Both are exceptionally good applications, but HTC has one key benefit - Adobe Flash support. The browser also supports incognito mode, allows you to search for words on the page and easily switch between the full and mobile versions of sites. You can also save articles for later reading and even browse entire pages offline. It is not surprising that all this works surprisingly quickly and smoothly - a little finger movement is enough to zoom in and out, and scrolling occurs instantly.
Camera
Instead of the 8-megapixel camera that was present on the previous model, Butterfly S has a 4-megapixel Ultrapixel camera with f2.0 with an aperture and a BSI sensor. You can take good pictures in low light, but a strong compression algorithm tends to blur details.
However, shooting looks much better on video. The HTC Butterfly S camera records videos with a resolution of 1920 × 1080 pixels and a frequency of 30 frames per second. Interference can be noticeable even when shooting in broad daylight, but the colors look vibrant.
The continuous auto focus function turns on very quickly - the phone instantly changes the focus of objects nearby and far. You can also choose how to lock the focus before shooting. You can also take 1 megapixel photos while recording video. The unit provides good sound quality during filming.
Like HTC One, Butterfly S has the ability to automatically display events in the gallery. There is also a 2.1 megapixel front camera, which can be found good use for video conferencing.
Specifications
Thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 quad-core processor (1.9 GHz) equipped with the phone, Butterfly S is a little faster than HTC One (which uses the same chip, but with a clock frequency of 1.7 GHz). Testing showed that the gadget processes commands a little faster than the Samsung Galaxy S4, which uses the same processor with a frequency of 1.9 GHz.
The HTC Butterfly S battery has a capacity of 3,200 mAh, which allows it to work without recharging a day and a half for moderate use. The smartphone was tested by specialists with standard settings, the use of two email accounts, Facebook and Twitter accounts and regular calls.
The voice quality is simply excellent, and the speakerphone function is at a high level thanks to the BoomSound front speakers.
Multimedia
The large and bright 5 ”1080p display is a big advantage when watching videos and images, and the loud and clear front stereo speakers provide great sound when watching movies and listening to music.
The built-in media player easily opens and plays almost all file formats, except for Divx / Xvid-encoded films - they are not supported on standard settings. However, on Google Play you can find a huge number of different players to fix this drawback (MX-player is one of the most famous offers).
The music player was developed by HTC and offers a user-friendly interface and high quality. By default, the application displays your library, which is divided into two columns, sorted by album, artist, song, and so on.
Advantages
As the HTC Butterfly S review shows, the smartphone boasts a capacious 3,200 mAh battery that provides long uptime, a powerful processor and an excellent screen. Its camera works well in low light conditions, and the microSD slot offers the ability to add more memory.
disadvantages
The glossy plastic of which the HTC Butterfly S case is made will accumulate a large number of fingerprints and spots. However, this cannot be called a serious disadvantage of the gadget - there are various types of covers for HTC Butterfly S on sale. A much more serious minus are the shortcomings of its design.
So, the phone is not waterproof, unlike its predecessor. Moreover, HTC Butterfly S firmware is not too high quality.
Conclusion
There is no doubt that HTC Butterfly S, whose price is less than $ 300, is a very high-quality phone. Despite the fact that its design cannot be called new or interesting, it deserves attention due to more powerful hardware specifications compared to the flagship HTC One, although it is offered at a slightly higher price.
However, many will agree that design should play an important role in smartphones. In addition, gadgets of this price category should be made using high-quality materials such as aluminum and glass.
At the same time, Butterfly S is available in three bright colors, which somewhat smooths out its uninteresting design.